Wagon.



E. W. KNAPP.

WAGON.

APPLICATION FILED AUGZB, 1911, RENEWED MAY 29, 1913- 1,067,988. Patented July 22, 1913.

EVERETT W. KNAPP, OF ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA.

Application filed August 28, 1911, Serial No. 646,451.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Fatcnted July 22, 1913.

Renewed May 29, 1913. Serial No. 770,794.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, Evnnn'r'r W. KNAPP, a. citizen of the United States, residing at St. Paul, in the county of Ramsey and State of Minnesota, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Wagons, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in wagons and its object is to provide a wagon having a separable reach enabling the steering axle of the wagon to make a very short turn by revolving under the body or bed of the wagon and carrying one of its wheels past the broken or detached end of the reach.

Numerous devices have been designed to permit the shorter turning of a wagon but my device makes possible a shorter turn without reduction in the size of the front wheels and without the danger of tipping the wagon bed which results from the ordinary design of reach and axle connecting parts, and maintaining the reach connection between the front and rear axles during the forward movement of the wagon.

In the drawings with which I have illustrated my invention and which form part of this specification, Figure 1 is a plan of a wagon bed fitted with my invention; Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation of the running gear and bed of a wagon; Fig. 3 is a sectional view of the reach parts as shown in Fig. 2, and Fig. 1 is a section on the line XX, Fig. 2. V

In the above drawings I have illustrated a wagon having a front axle A and a rear axle B on which are journaled in the ordi nary manner the front and rear wheels C and D respectively. A wagon bed E is supported on the axles A and B, the rear axle having a bolster 2 of ordinary design fixed thereon to carry the bed E. Braces 3 extend from the top of the axle B upon each side of the bolster 2, to the bed E at front and rear of the axle. l/Vagon stakes 4: are fixed in the ends of the bolster 2 to prevent lateral movement of the bed E upon the bolster. Front hounds 5 rest upon the front axle A and carry a lower bolster 6 fixed thereto. The fifth wheel 7 of the wagon rests upon the bolster 6 and upon two auxiliary bolsters 8 which are directly supported by the hounds. The fifth wheel 7 forms a com plete circle and is illustrated as having a diameter of substantially the width of the wagon bed and supporting a cooperating circle 9 attached to the upper bolsters 10 and 11. The circles 7 and 9 may be of any desired diameter. The bolster 1O rests directly on the lower bolster 6 at its center, having two wear plates 30 comparatively short in length bet-ween them to receive the load of the wagon bed E and the friction of turning the axle in guiding the wagon. The circles are designed to have a slight clearance space 31 between them when the wagon is in nor mal position to prevent friction in turning. Any tendency of the wagon bed to tip throws the circles into contact and supports the load on the front hounds. YVagon stakes 12 are fixed in the ends of the bolster 10 to prevent the lateral movement of the bed E which rests upon the bolsters 10 and 11 and is fixed thereto.

Braces 13 may be inserted between the wagon bed E and the bolster 10 to brace the wagon bed in its connection with the axle A. A king bolt 15 passes downward through the bolster 10, the lower bolster 6, and the axle A to permit the turning of the front axle in steering the wagon. A suitable tongue F is attached to the front hounds 5 at their forward end by means of a bolt 16. The hounds 5 are braced near their rear ends by a crosspieee 17 attached to the hounds and to the front or movable part 18 of the wagon reach which lies on the middle line of the wagon and is connected with the front axle A adjacent to the king bolt 15. A clutch part 19 is attached to the rear ends of the hounds 5 and the front reach part 18. The clutch part has an upwardly extending rim or lip 20 which extends horizontally through a considerable are, having the axis of, the king bolt 15 at its center.

A rear or fixed reach portion 21 is attached to the rear axle between the axle and the bolster 2, and is braced therefrom in the ordinary manner by rear hounds 22 attached to the axle B and to the reach 21 and further braced from the axle B by metal rods 23. The forward end of the rear reach portion 21 is braced vertically and sidewise from the wagon bed E by means of braces 2% extending from the bed E diagonally to the reach and upward to the opposite side of the bed.

The front end of the reach 21 is fitted with a clutch part 25 fixed to the reach and having a downstanding lip 26 which is adapted to engage the rim 20 of the clutch 19 when the front axle A is substantially transverse to the wagon bed and produce a direct reach action longitudinally of the wagon during the forward movement thereof. This action carries the pull from the front hounds and axle through the reach to the rear axle during the connection of the reach parts. The clutch part 25 is relatively narrow as compared'with the clutch part 19.

A rotation of the axle A upon the king bolt 15 causes the rim 20 of the clutchli) to slide through the clutch in engagement wit-lithe lip26 until the extremity of the rim 2O isreached when the clutch 19 becomes disengaged. fromth clutch 25 and the reachQl causing, a break in the reach action ofthe reach partslS andv2l. The position of the clutch 25 longitudinally of the wagon is such that-the movement of the wheel C beneaththe wagon bed E caused by the turning of the axle A does notbringthe wheel G into contact with theend of the reach 21' or clutoh-25 andthe axle A is free tot-urn as far as the tongue F or ateam attached thereto will permit. A very short turn may be made inthis way, and the breaking of a reach by a wheel in turningiis impossible.

The bed 15 of the wagon as illustrated consists of side stringers 27- formed of angle iron-andresting. upon the bolsters 2, 10 and 11; The sidestringers are designed to receive a wagonbox rack or similar receptacleithereon and to furnish-a verticalsupportfor the-reach'part 21. The bed may be formedwith \azcontinuous layer of planking if desired.-

The designof' the fifth wheel 7 as: previously descri'beclis adapted to a more complete support of thewagonbed while making a short t-urnsince the ends of the bolster 10 are supported by the circle 9 restingupon the circle? in any position of the axle. This form of v fifth wheel is also designed for the ready attachmentof my device to old-reach wagons by using the old bolster 10' and hounds 5' and adding the newparts.

In accordance with the patent statutes I have described'the principles of operation ofv my invention together with the apparatus which-I nowconsider to represent (holiest embodiment thereof but; I desire to have it understood that the constrnction shown: is

only illustrative and that the invention can within the scope of the following claims.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to protectby Let ters Patent is 1. A reach coupling for a wagon, comprising in combination, a rear axle, a front axle, a wagon bed supportedonsaid axles, said frontaxle being rotatively connected l with said'bed, afixed reach-part attached'to said:

rear axle and braced from said-becb and a direct forward pulling connection isformedduring a: partial I rotation of said front axle and to disconnect them toallo-w a-- furtherrotation of said axle beyond'fixedlimits.

2. In a: wagon, a pair of-snpporting axles one of which is rotatable to guide said'75 wagon and means connected with said axles to connect-1 them directly during-the substan tially straight line movement of said 3 wagons and'to disconnect them when said wagon is turning, saidmeans havingza rim and oven lapping engagement formingtza= straight line; pull connection separable when said: pull= is A out of astraight line and beyond fixed= limits;

3. A clutclrreach for a wagon, comprising in-combination, a:rearraxle and l a front axle, a reach. part attached: to each of said axles and 'having their endsf'ormed Iwvith atrial and engaging lip; adapted to clutch each other-separably during-apartial rotation of said axles froma normal position and to disengage to permit a further relativerotation of said' axles, andia wago-n-bedsupported on said axles and adapted to maintain said axles inoperative position during the-disengagement of said: reach parts.

In. testimony, whereof, I. have signed my name to thisspecificat-ion, in=the presenceof: two subscribing: witnesses.

E'VERETT \V. K'NAPP;

itnesses H; L. FISCHER,'. F; G; BRADBUR! Copies ofi-this patentmay be-obtainedfor five'cents each; b'y addiessingjhv Commissioner br-rmn-tse Washington, D. G. 

